Something Big

It's been a long time since I last posted anything here. Not because I've been sitting around with my feet up doing nothing. I have been busy for the last month or so on a commissioned work which, now it has been delivered to and happily received by the client. I can reveal on here.

The brief was for a large (and by large I mean around A2 size) print showing the 4 wind turbines at Marr village just off the A1 near Doncaster. Much larger than I would normally choose to work and completing the print was quite a challenge which stretched me well out of my comfort zone.

Registration of a print this size was a bit of a problem. The block was bigger than my printing jig and I had to cobble together a more Heath Robinson arrangement with mount board and masking tape. In the end I lost 2 out of an intended edition of 5 to sloppy registration.

Block cut for the first colour and placed against the registration marks.

The finished print

Turbines at Marr
17 colour reduction linocut.
400mm x 600mm
Edition of 3

The Angel of the North - 20:20 Print Exchange

Finally finished the small print for the 20:20 Print exchange. 8 colours on 25 prints.

This was supposed to be the final colour but after spending most of yesterday evening staring at it I decided to add a final dark.

Drying on the floor as I'm running out of space.

The final print after 8 colours with some glare from the still wet ink.

I also printed a simple 2 colour version using the same block.

Not sure which version I prefer.

Angel of the North

Almost finished this small print and after 6 colours the subject is now obvious. The Angel of the North at Gateshead. Only one more colour to go so it should be finished this weekend.

The Angel dominates the landscape around it and I was keen to retain this aspect in the print. Not easy working in such a small format. The image is only 140mm x 140mm. Hopefully this will come across in the finished print.

20-20 Print Exchange

I have agreed to take part in the 20x20 print exchange organised by Hot Bed Press in Salford. Never done this before and it's proving something of a challange. The prints have to be no bigger than the 20cm x 20cm paper size, Which is much smaller than I normally work, the format is square which I don't find an easy format to compose within and the edition size has to be 25, which by my standards is enormous. Anyway I think I have come up with a good composition so here goes.

Colour 1; a light grey and some fluffy clouds.

Colour 2; a dark to light blue blend. The block inked ready for printing.

and the print, and just maybe there is enough information here to recognise the subject.

Working Holiday

A selection of sketches from holiday on the Ceredigion Coast in Mid Wales.

Views from the cottage in the hills above Llanrhystud. Pen and ink on the left and pencil and watercolour on the right.

Aberystwyth Pier. Pen and ink.

Evening Sky and the northern sweep of Cardigan Bay with Snowdonia and the hills of the Lleyn Peninsular strung out along the horizon like a row of islands. Watercolour.

Stonechats (left) and the cliffs north of Llangrannog (right). Both pen and ink.

Llangrannog. Pen and ink.

Swallows on telephone wires (left) and Ynys Lochtyn (right). Both Pen and ink.

Ynys Loctyn. Watercolour. There's a print here!

Two pages of sketches of Gatekeeper Butterflies. Watercolour.

Aberystwyth Castle and War Memorial. Pen and ink. Another print.

Ramsey Sound

Clearing Sky over Ramsey Sound.
17 colour reduction linocut. 
254mm x 360mm
Edition of 6.

Finally finished the Pembrokeshire print. This print has its origins a long time ago. The original sketches were made way back in 1989 but I never did anything with them. Until receiving an email from an old friend describing a walk along this particular stretch of coast brought them back to my mind.

For those readers familiar with the Pembrokeshire coast the location is just passed the lifeboat station at St Justinians looking out across to Ramsey.

Catch Up

I have finally got around to posting my Rockcliffe print on my Folksy Shop, you can find it here

After an enforced absence from the world of the web due to a small IT issue, I'm  now back with a new print on the go.

The first colour is a pale cream printed over the whole block with just a few white shapes cut from it.

The second colour is a dark blue to light blend printed across the top half.

Followed by a darker blue across the top.

and a light blue grey across the bottom.